1,158 research outputs found
Synchronization and structure in an adaptive oscillator network
We analyze the interplay of synchronization and structure evolution in an
evolving network of phase oscillators. An initially random network is
adaptively rewired according to the dynamical coherence of the oscillators, in
order to enhance their mutual synchronization. We show that the evolving
network reaches a small-world structure. Its clustering coefficient attains a
maximum for an intermediate intensity of the coupling between oscillators,
where a rich diversity of synchronized oscillator groups is observed. In the
stationary state, these synchronized groups are directly associated with
network clusters.Comment: 6 pages, 7 figure
A hybrid tree/finite-difference approach for Heston-Hull-White type models
We study a hybrid tree-finite difference method which permits to obtain
efficient and accurate European and American option prices in the Heston
Hull-White and Heston Hull-White2d models. Moreover, as a by-product, we
provide a new simulation scheme to be used for Monte Carlo evaluations.
Numerical results show the reliability and the efficiency of the proposed
method
Analysis of scale-free networks based on a threshold graph with intrinsic vertex weights
Many real networks are complex and have power-law vertex degree distribution,
short diameter, and high clustering. We analyze the network model based on
thresholding of the summed vertex weights, which belongs to the class of
networks proposed by Caldarelli et al. (2002). Power-law degree distributions,
particularly with the dynamically stable scaling exponent 2, realistic
clustering, and short path lengths are produced for many types of weight
distributions. Thresholding mechanisms can underlie a family of real complex
networks that is characterized by cooperativeness and the baseline scaling
exponent 2. It contrasts with the class of growth models with preferential
attachment, which is marked by competitiveness and baseline scaling exponent 3.Comment: 5 figure
Measuring the evolution of contemporary western popular music
Popular music is a key cultural expression that has captured listeners'
attention for ages. Many of the structural regularities underlying musical
discourse are yet to be discovered and, accordingly, their historical evolution
remains formally unknown. Here we unveil a number of patterns and metrics
characterizing the generic usage of primary musical facets such as pitch,
timbre, and loudness in contemporary western popular music. Many of these
patterns and metrics have been consistently stable for a period of more than
fifty years, thus pointing towards a great degree of conventionalism.
Nonetheless, we prove important changes or trends related to the restriction of
pitch transitions, the homogenization of the timbral palette, and the growing
loudness levels. This suggests that our perception of the new would be rooted
on these changing characteristics. Hence, an old tune could perfectly sound
novel and fashionable, provided that it consisted of common harmonic
progressions, changed the instrumentation, and increased the average loudness.Comment: Supplementary materials not included. Please see the journal
reference or contact the author
Oral malodor in Special Care Patients: current knowledge
Epidemiological studies report that about 50% of the population may have oral malodor
with a strong social and psychological impact in their daily life. When intra-oral causes are
excluded, referral to an appropriate medical specialist is paramount for management and
treatment of extra-oral causes. The intra-oral causes of halitosis are highly common, and the
dentist is the central clinician to diagnose and treat them. Pseudohalitosis or halitophobia
may occur and an early identification of these conditions by the dentist is important in order
to avoid unnecessary dental treatments for patients who need psychological or psychiatric
therapy. The organoleptic technique is still considered the most reliable examination method
to diagnose genuine halitosis. Special needs patients are more prone than others to have
oral malodor because of concurrent systemic or metabolic diseases, and medications.
The present report reviews halitosis, its implications, and the management in special care
dentistry
Demographic growth and the distribution of language sizes
It is argued that the present log-normal distribution of language sizes is,
to a large extent, a consequence of demographic dynamics within the population
of speakers of each language. A two-parameter stochastic multiplicative process
is proposed as a model for the population dynamics of individual languages, and
applied over a period spanning the last ten centuries. The model disregards
language birth and death. A straightforward fitting of the two parameters,
which statistically characterize the population growth rate, predicts a
distribution of language sizes in excellent agreement with empirical data.
Numerical simulations, and the study of the size distribution within language
families, validate the assumptions at the basis of the model.Comment: To appear in Int. J. Mod. Phys. C (2008
Dependences of the Casimir-Polder interaction between an atom and a cavity wall on atomic and material properties
The Casimir-Polder and van der Waals interactions between an atom and a flat
cavity wall are investigated under the influence of real conditions including
the dynamic polarizability of the atom, actual conductivity of the wall
material and nonzero temperature of the wall. The cases of different atoms near
metal and dielectric walls are considered. It is shown that to obtain accurate
results for the atom-wall interaction at short separations, one should use the
complete tabulated optical data for the complex refractive index of the wall
material and the accurate dynamic polarizability of an atom. At relatively
large separations in the case of a metal wall, one may use the plasma model
dielectric function to describe the dielectric properties of wall material. The
obtained results are important for the theoretical interpretation of
experiments on quantum reflection and Bose-Einstein condensation.Comment: 5 pages, 1 figure, iopart.cls is used, to appear in J. Phys. A
(special issue: Proceedings of QFEXT05, Barcelona, Sept. 5-9, 2005
Dynamics of Coupling Functions in Globally Coupled Maps: Size, Periodicity and Stability of Clusters
It is shown how different globally coupled map systems can be analyzed under
a common framework by focusing on the dynamics of their respective global
coupling functions. We investigate how the functional form of the coupling
determines the formation of clusters in a globally coupled map system and the
resulting periodicity of the global interaction. The allowed distributions of
elements among periodic clusters is also found to depend on the functional form
of the coupling. Through the analogy between globally coupled maps and a single
driven map, the clustering behavior of the former systems can be characterized.
By using this analogy, the dynamics of periodic clusters in systems displaying
a constant global coupling are predicted; and for a particular family of
coupling functions, it is shown that the stability condition of these clustered
states can straightforwardly be derived.Comment: 12 pp, 5 figs, to appear in PR
Comment on: Role of Intermittency in Urban Development: A Model of Large-Scale City Formation
Comment to D.H. Zanette and S.C. Manrubia, Phys. Rev. Lett. 79, 523 (1997).Comment: 1 page no figure
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